As a lawyer, do you feel like you would like to be "plain" chocolate or vanilla ice-cream, focusing or specialising in one area of law or do you feel you need to be diverse and multidimensional with your legal knowledge base and career, akin to the ranges of flavour in choc & vanilla ripple or lime and coconut or raspberry swirl ice-cream? You may "specialise" in one area of law, for example, succession or family law, but does that mean you only need to know the Succession Act 2006 (NSW) ("SA") and/or the Family Law Act 1975 (Cth) ("FLA")? Even if you specialise in one area of law, does that preclude the necessity for even basic knowledge in other areas of law? Of course, we can't know all areas of law thoroughly, its just not practical, however, is it good "lawyering" to have knowledge in a variety of areas of law or extensive knowledge in one and be considered a "specialist"? … [Read more...]
Archives for July 2015
9 Tips To Better Understand Medical Documents In PI & Med Neg Cases
You are a common law lawyer who works on personal injury and/or medical negligence file/s, which may contain clinical notes, medico-legal reports, hospital records and treatment records etc. Do you require a medical or nursing degree or background to decipher the medical information and its meaning in the context of law? Will a "reputable" medical dictionary and/or medical texts provide you with sufficient knowledge and skill to run the matter successfully? Common law lawyers, aren't required to be medically trained, however, some are ex practicing doctors, nurses or have been employed in medicine, with many more having no medical background. How do common law lawyers, with no medical background, get a "handle on" medical terminology, abbreviations in documentation, procedures, tests, surgery and medical culture so as to run files confidently and successfully? What tips can be employed to assist and better understand medical documents in personal injury and medical negligence … [Read more...]
Are You A Stressed and/or Depressed Lawyer – What’s the Solution?
In 2011, Beacon Research and Consulting Group in conjunction with "BeyondBlue" conducted research amongst law students, lawyers and barristers and found that 73.3% of lawyers were more likely to agree that having a stressful job increases the likelihood of depression. In 2009, the Brain & Mind Research Institute of the University of Sydney also conducted research on law students, lawyers and barristers and found the levels of distress as follows: 21.9% of law students reported high levels of distress (compared to 10.2% in the general population) and 13.3% reported levels of very high distress (compared to 3.1% in the general population) 22.3% of solicitors reported high levels of distress (compared to 9.2% in the general population) and 8.7% reported levels of very high distress (compared to 3.8% in the general population) 12.5% of barristers reported high levels of distress (compared to 9.2% in the general population) and 4.2% reported levels of very high distress … [Read more...]
Assertive or Aggressive? Whats In It For YOU?
Are there times you feel you could be likened to a "boxer" and that your work environment to that of a"boxing ring"? You speak with your opponent on the phone and there's aggression, you receive correspondence and its "aggressive talk" you appear in Court and they "up the ante" in "combat"! It appears that to get "anywhere" as a lawyer, you need to be combative and aggressive, with "gloves on" at all times! [It may not always be your opponents in another office, it may equally apply to your colleagues in the same office!] Whats your initial approach and response.......assertive or aggressive? What gets the best results for your client and for your career success, long term? … [Read more...]
How To Brief Barristers… So Everyone’s Happy!
You have a "grenade of a file" in your hands and you know its about to explode on the next court appearance, do you brief a "new" barrister to attend at the last minute and provide very scant information and then go M.I.A., so the Barrister is unable to clarify and get further instructions.... not happy! You have difficulty speaking to clients about legal costs and you don't want to lose a client by talking about "money" and you feel very awkward asking the client for money to be put in trust, however, you need a Barrister and therefore brief him/her without funds in trust for payment of their (our your) services? These are what I call "slash and burn" type scenarios, which will suffice if you only require a one transactional briefing. However, if you desire to build an ongoing relationship with a barrister of choice, much more is required......... … [Read more...]